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We have all been at the store or stared at a computer screen with a blank look and pondered on the decision to pre-order a game. At times you may have end by asking your self, “is it worth pre-ordering?” It helps to look at the pros and cons of pre-ordering before making a judgment.

The Pros of Pre-Ordering:

One way that video game publishers and distributors have encouraged customers to pre-order is offer exclusive content in the game. Pre-ordered games often include special weapons, characters, player-class or levels that are not offered with the regular version of the game.

Another tactic used is for distributors to have a special promotion when pre-ordering a game. This has usually been an access code to either download the first DLC or gain access to the beta of an upcoming game. On rare occasions; publishers have included a free game as part of a pre-order bundle.

However nobody has considered the economical benefits to pre-ordering a game. Games are expensive and spending $60 will leave an empty hole in your wallet. Thankfully when pre-ordering, most stores allow you put a down small payment towards your purchase while allowing you to add more later. Hence on the day of the release, you can get your game and still beer money.

But the most obvious reason most gamers would want to pre-order is incase the game is sold out at your local retailer. Because nobody wants to be the one loser in their group of friends not to be playing what could be the best game of the year all because it was sold out.

The Cons of Pre-Ordering:

This is probably the one issue most of us will ponder when deciding to pre-order; the possibility of the game being terrible. Your excited for game you’ve pre-ordered only to learn that it has been panned by critics. If you pre-ordered Duke Nukem: Forever, you learned this lesson the hard way.

Than you might encounter the problem when none of your friends are playing the game because something better was released. You may have pre-ordered Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 but only to learn that all your friends are into Battlefield 3. This usually happens as a surprise for most gamers since it was totally unexpected. But in the end you have become the one loser in your group of friends not to be playing the most awesome game.